Aspiring Aerospace Engineer Aiming for MIT + T10's and NASA JPL [Loudoun County, VA Resident, 3.96 GPA]

[Aweeya]

Hey Everyone, I’m a sophomore, and I’d really like to get into MIT, and Ivy League Schools. This is my second time posting, but a few things have changed. I’m applying as an Aerospace Engineering Major. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

IMPORTANT
I’m a sophomore, so some of these things are planned, and not yet completed

Demographics

• US citizen
• Virginia (Loudoun County)
• Public Highschool + Magnet School, Academies of Loudoun Advanced AET Program
• Other special factors: Legacy? My grandfather went to NYU Stern for his MBA, and my uncle went to UPenn Wharton for his MBA. I’m not sure if this counts as legacy at all, or if it’d be of any use to me.
• Budget: (Not a concern)

Intended Major(s)

Aerospace Engineering

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

• Unweighted HS GPA: 3.96 when applying
• Weighted HS GPA: 4.5 when applying
• Class Rank: My school doesn’t do class rank, but I’m probably getting top 10%
• ACT/SAT Scores: I’m taking the June SAT, hoping for a 1530+

List your HS coursework

7th:
Algebra 1: A-
Spanish 1: B+

8th:
Geometry: A+
Spanish 2: A+

9th:
Advanced Guitar Honors: A+
PE 9: A+
Algebra 2 + Trig Honors: A
Intro to AP World History Honors: A-
Research Biology Honors: A
English 9 Honors: A
Spanish 3: A

Summer Course:
PE 10: A+

10th:
Artist Guitar Honors: A+
AP Precalc BC: A
AP World History: A
Research Chemistry Honors: A
English 10 Honors: A
Intro to Engineering Design Honors: A+
Band Honors: A+

11th: (Every grade from here is planned)
Artist Guitar Honors: A+
AET AP Calc BC: A
APUSH: A
AET Physics (Honors): A
AP Lang: A
AET Engineering I (Honors): A+
Band Honors: A+

12th:
Artist Guitar Honors: A+
AET Multivariable Calc DE: A
AP Gov: A
AET AP Physics C Mechanics: A
AP Lit: A
AET Engineering II (Honors): A+
Band Honors: A+

Awards (Definitely my weakest section)

Trinity Grade 8 Certification w/ Distinction from Trinity College in London for Pop and Rock Guitar (International)

All Virginia Guitar 3x, also 3rd in my school to ever achieve. (State)

Hoping for Robotics State Win and/or Worlds Qualification (State/International)

TSA Award in CAD (State)

Some form of national merit, commended/semifinalist/finalist (National)

Extracurriculars (Some EC’s don’t have descriptions yet because I haven’t fully completed the activity to its max yet) (The ones that don’t, I’ve added planning text so you know the extent I’m trying to push it to.)

For Common App:

Guitar Performance & Leadership:

Led 30-member ensemble as Concertmaster; lead guitarist of Blackfire (Battle of the Bands winner); 10 years of study (Rock, Classical, Pop, Jazz).

CAD/Assistive Design:

Designed 5 assistive tools (Fusion 360); applied Von Mises Yield, decreased costs by 44%; deployed in elderly homes; documented reports via Medium.

HIVE (High-fidelity Ionospheric Variability Examiner) (Not Complete Yet)

Independently designed NASA style ionospheric mission for modeling plasma irregularities in the F-region ionosphere. Designed everything including payload deployment plans, systems architecture, and the modeling strategy.

What needs to be done: write paper in AIAA format, get validation/feedback from my research mentor (A professor at George Mason University), (he teaches autonomous systems in robotics), get published on arxiv, and physically design/CAD the deployment mechanism.

Research with Dr. Cameron Nowzari at GMU on autonomous systems in UAVs and drones (Not Complete Yet):

Haven’t done yet, so don’t have description, but I’ll be helping him/grad students on their robotics projects, hoping for tangible results and a glowing letter of rec

NASA Scholars (Not Complete Yet):

VSCS and VASTS NASA programs, Spent the year working on online NASA coursework in advanced topics like spatial telemetry and hardware for divider covers on the ISS. Then was selected out of the 500 students to be part of a specialized summer academy at both Wallops Flight Facility and Langley Research Center, where my group designed a manned mission to mars, and presented the mission to a panel.

Robotics (Not Complete Yet):

Fully designed my subteam’s drivetrain, intake, and outtake. Guaranteed some form of leadership for our subteam in my junior year, and some overall leaderhsip for the club my senior year. Hoping for good competition results.

Sterling Leo Club:

Founded local Leo Club Chapter; scaled membership from 2 to 30. Led 10+ service projects, managing logistics & distribution of 750+ items to families.

Percussion (Marching Band, Indoor Drumline, Concert Band):

Led a 15-member section to unify playing styles into a cohesive sound. Mentored peers in Drum-Corps style repertoire to ensure group-wide precision.

For MIT:

Music Performance/Leadership (Guitar + Percussion):

Concertmaster of a 30-member guitar ensemble and lead guitarist for Blackfire (Battle of the Bands winner); 10 years of multigenre study (Rock, Classical, Pop, Jazz). Led drumline front ensemble as Center Marimba; mentored 15+ members and increased overall ensemble musicality.

CAD/Assistive Design:

Engineered 5 assistive tools (Fusion 360); applied Von Mises Yield Criterion and Finite Element Analysis across 3 design iterations, cutting costs by ~44%; deployed in X elderly homes; published methodology and stress reports on Medium; published open-source designs on Thingiverse.

HIVE (High-fidelity Ionospheric Variability Examiner) (Not Complete Yet)

Independently designed NASA style ionospheric mission for modeling plasma irregularities in the F-region ionosphere. Designed everything including payload deployment plans, systems architecture, and the modeling strategy.

What needs to be done: write paper in AIAA format, get validation/feedback from my research mentor (A professor at George Mason University), (he teaches autonomous systems in robotics), get published on arxiv, and physically design/CAD the deployment mechanism.

Research with Dr. Cameron Nowzari at GMU on autonomous systems in UAVs and drones (Not Complete Yet):

Haven’t done yet, so don’t have description, but I’ll be helping him/grad students on their robotics projects, hoping for tangible results and a glowing letter of rec

Essays/LORs/Other
I haven’t started my essays yet, but I’m striving for them to be at least 8-9/10. Letter of Rec from my guitar teacher, known her for all 4 years of highschool, and she made me section leader in the top guitar ensemble as a sophomore. One more letter of rec from my research mentor at GMU.

Schools
Reach Schools

MIT - Early

Stanford - Regular

Cornell - Regular

Princeton - Regular

Caltech - Regular

UC Berkeley - Regular

UCLA - Regular

UPenn - Regular

—----------------------------------------------------

Match Schools

Georgia Tech - Early

UIUC - Early

Purdue - Early

UMD - Early

UVA - Early

RPI - Early
—----------------------------------------------------

Safety Schools

VTech - Early

Embry-Riddle - Regular

GMU - Early

Penn State - Early

[tsbna44]

You don’t have any reach, match, and safety schools yet. You don’t have any SAT or essay or LORs yet. I see you say budget is not a concern so it’s great they are willing to spend $400k plus. That makes application selection easier (none to cull due to lack of affordability).

On your glowing letter of rec - you need it from your teachers. Some, not all, will look at others and they likely won’t hold near as much weight as the teacher ones.

What you have is a GREAT record.

Keep up the great work and come back in a year from now and that will be the time for a chance me - or even after 11th grade.

But also do some homework - you want aero and Ivy. Unless I missed one, only one Ivy is ABET accredited in aero. Neither Cornell (has an aero minor) nor Penn are. Neither is Berkeley but Davis, Irvine and San Diego as is very popular CPSLO.

ABET lists 80 schools, some of which are duplicated, if you truly want Aero.

The beauty of engineering, short of a few schools, there where is unlikely to matter mIT is certainly one of those that make a difference.

You might go visit some as well - if you go away on family trips, visit a college or two. The campuses and areas you chose are different. Figure out a great environment for you.

• Akron, The University of

  Akron, Ohio, United States

• Alabama in Huntsville, The University of

  Huntsville, Alabama, United States

  Formerly University of Alabama in Huntsville before Jan 1, 2000

• Former Institution Name

  Alabama in Huntsville, University of

  Huntsville, Alabama, United States

  Renamed The University of Alabama in Huntsville on Dec 31, 1999

• Alabama, The University of

  Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States

• Arizona State University

  Tempe, Arizona, United States

• Arizona, The University of

  Tucson, Arizona, United States

• Auburn University

  Auburn, Alabama, United States

• Buffalo, University at, The State University of New York

  Buffalo, New York, United States

  Formerly State University of New York at Buffalo before Feb 1, 1998

• California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

  San Luis Obispo, California, United States

• California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

  Pomona, California, United States

• California State University, Long Beach

  Long Beach, California, United States

• California, Davis, University of

  Davis, California, United States

• California, Irvine, University of

  Irvine, California, United States

• California, Los Angeles, University of

  Los Angeles, California, United States

• California, San Diego, University of

  La Jolla, California, United States

• Former Institution Name

  Capitol College

  Laurel, Maryland, United States

  Renamed Capitol Technology University on Aug 27, 2014

• Capitol Technology University

  Laurel, Maryland, United States

  Formerly Capitol College before Aug 27, 2014

• Case Western Reserve University

  Cleveland, Ohio, United States

• Central Florida, University of

  Orlando, Florida, United States

• Cincinnati, University of

  Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

• Clarkson University

  Potsdam, New York, United States

• Former Institution Name

  Colorado at Boulder, University of

  Boulder, Colorado, United States

  Renamed University of Colorado Boulder on Mar 12, 2018

• Colorado Boulder, University of

  Boulder, Colorado, United States

  Formerly University of Colorado at Boulder before Mar 13, 2018

• Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Daytona Beach

  Daytona Beach, Florida, United States

• Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott

  Prescott, Arizona, United States

• Florida Institute of Technology

  Melbourne, Florida, United States

• Florida, University of

  Gainesville, Florida, United States

• Georgia Institute of Technology

  Atlanta, Georgia, United States

• Hartford, University of

  West Hartford, Connecticut, United States

• Former Institution Name

  Illinois at Urbana - Champaign, University of

  Champaign, Illinois, United States

  Renamed University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign on Jan 16, 2023

• Illinois Institute of Technology

  Chicago, Illinois, United States

• Illinois Urbana - Champaign, University of

  Champaign, Illinois, United States

  Formerly University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign before Jan 17, 2023

• Iowa State University of Science and Technology

  Ames, Iowa, United States

• Kansas, The University of

  Lawrence, Kansas, United States

  Formerly University of Kansas before Jan 1, 2000

• Former Institution Name

  Kansas, University of

  Lawrence, Kansas, United States

  Renamed The University of Kansas on Dec 31, 1999

• Kent State University

  Kent, Ohio, United States

• Maryland College Park, University of

  College Park, Maryland, United States

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

• Miami, University of

  Coral Gables, Florida, United States

• Michigan, University of

  Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States

• Minnesota - Twin Cities, University of

  Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

  Formerly University of Minnesota-Minneapolis before Jan 1, 1980

• Former Institution Name

  Minnesota-Minneapolis, University of

  Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

  Renamed University of Minnesota - Twin Cities on Dec 31, 1979

• Mississippi State University

  Mississippi State, Mississippi, United States

• Missouri University of Science and Technology

  Rolla, Missouri, United States

  Formerly University of Missouri-Rolla before Jan 1, 2008

• Former Institution Name

  Missouri-Rolla, University of

  Rolla, Missouri, United States

  Renamed Missouri University of Science and Technology on Dec 31, 2007

• New Mexico State University

  Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States

• Former Institution Name

  New York at Buffalo, State University of

  Buffalo, New York, United States

  Renamed University at Buffalo, The State University of New York on Jan 31, 1998

• North Carolina State University at Raleigh

  Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

• Notre Dame, University of

  Notre Dame, Indiana, United States

• Former Institution Name

  Ohio State University

  Columbus, Ohio, United States

  Renamed The Ohio State University on Dec 31, 1999

• Ohio State University, The

  Columbus, Ohio, United States

  Formerly Ohio State University before Jan 1, 2000

• Oklahoma State University

  Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States

• Oklahoma, University of

  Norman, Oklahoma, United States

• Former Institution Name

  Parks College of Engineering and Aviation, St. Louis University

  St. Louis, Missouri, United States

  Renamed Saint Louis University on Dec 31, 2003

• Pennsylvania State University, The

  University Park, Pennsylvania, United States

• Princeton University

  Princeton, New Jersey, United States

• Purdue University at West Lafayette

  West Lafayette, Indiana, United States

• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

  Troy, New York, United States

• Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

  New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States

• Saint Louis University

  Saint Louis, Missouri, United States

  Formerly Parks College of Engineering and Aviation, St. Louis University before Jan 1, 2004

• San Diego State University

  San Diego, California, United States

• San Jose State University

  San Jose, California, United States

• South Carolina, University of

  Columbia, South Carolina, United States

• Southern California, University of

  Los Angeles, California, United States

• Southern New Hampshire University

  Manchester, New Hampshire, United States

• Syracuse University

  Syracuse, New York, United States

• Tennessee Knoxville, University of

  Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

• Texas A&M University

  College Station, Texas, United States

• Texas at Arlington, The University of

  Arlington, Texas, United States

• Texas at Austin, University of

  Austin, Texas, United States

• Tuskegee University

  Tuskegee, Alabama, United States

• United States Air Force Academy

  USAFA, Colorado, United States

• United States Naval Academy

  Annapolis, Maryland, United States

• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

  Blacksburg, Virginia, United States

• Virginia, University of

  Charlottesville, Virginia, United States

• Washington, University of

  Seattle, Washington, United States

• West Virginia University

  Morgantown, West Virginia, United States

• Western Michigan University

  Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States

• Wichita State University

  Wichita, Kansas, United States

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

  Worcester, Massachusetts, United States

[NiceUnparticularMan]

I think your current list of possible schools looks reasonable for now, although I think you will likely be able to trim it down as this process unfolds.

In terms of getting into the most selective holistic review private universities on your list, so like MIT et al, the best single thing you can do in my view is read, and really take to heart, this classic blog post from MIT:

Applying Sideways | MIT Admissions

The whole thing is important, but this is the executive summary:

[W]hat should you do if you still want to come to MIT?

• Do well in school. Take tough classes. Interrogate your beliefs and presumptions. Pursue knowledge with dogged precision. Because it is better to be educated and intelligent than not.

• Be nice. This cannot be overstated. Don’t be wanton or careless or cruel. Treat those around you with kindness. Help people. Contribute to your community.

• Pursue your passion. Find what you love, and do it. Maybe it’s a sport. Maybe it’s an instrument. Maybe it’s research. Maybe it’s being a leader in your community. Math. Baking. Napping. Hopscotch. Whatever it is, spend time on it. Immerse yourself in it. Enjoy it.

If you do these three things, you will be applying sideways to MIT.

I think this is all good advice for other holistic review private universities as well.

I will add as commentary that I think the biggest single “mistake” a lot of young kids with an interest in these colleges make is not taking that middle thing, “Be nice,” sufficiently seriously. Like, they don’t understand/believe how seriously these colleges can take that factor when making their final admissions decisions, and so don’t put nearly the amount of time and energy and reflection into it as they should.

And if they do anything at all, it is stuff that stays in their comfort zone, like they “start a charity” as an individual. That’s not really what these schools have in mind. What they really want is kids who get recommendations from teachers saying things like how this kid was always volunteering to help others in class, volunteering their time and energy to helping others in their school community, and so on. The type of kid they can sincerely say will be missed once they are gone. That’s the sort of thing it takes to move from a generally positive personal rating, which likely won’t be enough, to the kind of very good personal rating that can keep you competitive.

So why don’t more kids do all that? I think again part of it is they can’t quite believe these programs would think like this. But also, it is uncomfortable for them. That’s not their natural personality, they feel awkward, they would prefer to be a different sort of person.

And I personally think that is fine, but . . . it isn’t maximizing your chances of getting admitted to these colleges. Plenty of other great colleges, sure, they are happy to take lots of academic stars with generally positive personal ratings. But not these most selective colleges.

And it IS learnable. It can take years, but if you sort of force yourself to practice it, to push through the awkward phases, it can start feeling more comfortable for you. You might even like it. But for most of us, it does take a long, sustained effort to get to that sort of place. And that is one of the reasons why it is relatively rare by the time otherwise smart and ambitious and hard-working kids are applying to college.

[tsbna44]

One more thing - not a believer in predicting SATs. You’ll do your best. Study, tutor, etc. but you need a math 800, 780 minimum for MIT. Not to pressure you but for all the great you’ve done and plan to do - that single # is critical.

I also agree that you’ll end up culling your list - but if you get out and explore, you might alter it. VT, Cornell are in the sticks. MIT, Penn urban. The UCs really large etc vs others not.

Go on some visits. Find the kind of environment you like. There will be like schools to sub in to meet your preference.

[Momofthree24]

A lot of what you’ve written here is projected grades, test scores and awards so it’s difficult to really chance you. What I can tell you is that you should consider taking more than 1 year of high school foreign language to make yourself a competitive candidate for top schools. And eventually, you’ll need to get letters of recommendation from your high school teachers in academic subjects and not from your guitar teacher and mentor. Good luck to you. I hope you accomplish all the things you’ve projected here.

[Muu9]

You should study for the SAT over the summer to aim for national merit when you take the NMSQT in junior year. This will give you $$$$$$ options if you don’t get into your reaches.

If you’re good at physics, consider taking the f=ma exam

[5for5]

The OOS Acceptance rate for Georgia Tech Aerospace this cycle was 7.2%. 4,876 OOS applicants applied to the program and 352 were admitted. For overall OOS engineering GT applicants for Fall ‘26 - 27,804 applied and 1,952 were accepted for a 7% acceptance rate.